Jacob p



J. P. GILBERT.

Combined Quarter-Boot and Toe-Weight for Horses.

Patented April 13,1875.

No.l62,052.

THE GRAPHIC CO.PHOTD:L|TH.39&41 PARK PLACE, N-Y- JACOB P. GILBERT, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

IMPROVEMENT lN COMBINED QUARTER-BOOTS AND TOEWEIGHTS FOR HORSES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 162,052, dated April 13, 1875; application filed February 18, 1875.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JACOB P. GILBERT, of New York, i n the county and State of New York, haveinvented a new and useful OombinedQuarter-Boot and Toe- Weight for Horses; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, making part of this specification.

My invention relates to certain improvements in quarter-boots for the protection of the quarter or heel of the foot, and inv toe-weights for attachment to the toe of the foot, to balance it and regulate its action.

The invention consists in a novel construction and arrangement of parts, whereby either the quarter-boot or the toe-weight may each be used separately, or may be connected together, so that both may be used at the same time.

In the accompanying drawing, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a horses foot with the quarter-boot attached. Fig. 2 is a similar view, with the toe-weight attached. Fig. 3 is a sectional View of the combined quarter-boot and toe-weight attached to the foot.

The quarter-boot B is constructed of leather of suitable thickness to insure the proper degree of stiffness, and is lined with felt, cloth, or other suitable soft material. The rear portion of the boot is concavo-convex in form, corresponding with the shape of the quarter or heel of the horses foot, and sufficiently wide to cover the same, and tapers toward the front, where it is divided, and is provided with a strap, b and a buckle, N, for attach ing it to the hoof, by which means it may be made to fit larger or smaller hoofs. O is a strap, which passes around the lower part of the hoof, immediately above the shoe D The rear part of the strap is of double thickness on its lower edge, and tapers upward to its upper edge, by which construction the lower edge of the strap rests squarely upon the heels of the shoe, and is prevented from working connected with the rear-portion of the boot B by means of a short strap, f, which may be stitched to both of the parts, or may be provided with buckles or other means for readily attaching and detaching it. The front portions of the strap 0 and boot B are connected with each other by means of a toe hook or clip, consisting of an iron plate or bar, E, with its lower end bent or turned inward to form a hook or spur, e, and having at its upper end an eye or loop, 6 for the reception of a strap, g, and on its front or outer side a downwardly-projecting hook or spur, 6 When the boot is attached to the foot the spur e is slipped into a hole made in the hoof at the lower front edge, betweenthe hoof and the upper side of the shoe. The boot is then fastened in front by means of the strap b and buckle b the strap 1) being passed through the loop of the strap g. The strap 0 is then fastened in front by means of its buckle 0., The boot is prevented from slipping downward by reason. of its tapering shape, corresponding with that of the foot, and is held down and prevented from slipping up ward by its attachment to the strap 0 at the heel, and by the toe clip in front. The strap 0 is prevented from slipping downward by reason of the tapering form of the hoof, and by resting on the heels of the shoe, and is held down by its engagement with the quarter or heel of the foot behind, and the hook or spur e in front, and thus the boot is held securely in place upon the foot, as shown in Fig.1, without any inconvenience to the horse. or spur 0 may be made entirely in the hoof by burning with a hot iron, or it may be made partly in the shoe by filing a notch in the upper side thereof. The toe-weight consists of a weighted pad, H, made of leather, with a filling of lead or other convenient metal to give it the proper weight. It is provided with a spur, M, for engagement with the hole in the toe of the hoof, in the samemanner as the spur 0 above described, and with one or more downwardly-projecting hooks, 7L2, for engagement with strap 0, in the same manner as the hook e in Fig. 1. When the toe-weight is to be used alone the spur h is slipped into the hole in the hoof, and the weight is held in place by a strap, as shown in Fig. 2, which strap may be the strap 0 detached from the boot, or a separate and independent strap The hole for the reception of the hook provided for the purpose, but of the same form as the strap 0.

The combined quarter-boot and toe-weight is formed. by substituting the pad H for the toeclip E, in which case the pad is provided with a strap, '5, similar to the strap g, and the parts are attached and held in place on the foot, as shown in Fig. 3.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination of the quarter-boot B, constructed as described, the strap 0, having its rear portion of double thickness and tapering upward, the toe-clip E, provided with the loop (1 and downwardly-projecting hook or spur c and the straps f and g, substantially 3. The combination of the quarter-boot B,

the toe-weight H, the strap 0, and the straps f and z, forming a combined but detachable quarter-boot and toe-weight, substantially as herein shown and described.

Witnesses: J. P. GILBERT.

MICHAEL RYAN, BENJAMIN W. HOFFMAN. 

